


The Names He Carried

by TinyFakeFanficRock



Series: The Maisie Files [7]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-25
Updated: 2017-01-25
Packaged: 2018-09-19 19:23:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9457139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TinyFakeFanficRock/pseuds/TinyFakeFanficRock
Summary: Astor can take leave from Searchlight, but not from the names on the irradiated dog tags.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written for the Fallout Kink Meme.

Maisie half-woke, rolled over, reached over to the other side of the bed, and woke the rest of the way when she encountered only the sheets. Cold. He'd been up a while.

She found Astor at her kitchen table, still in only his pajama pants, worrying his chain of irradiated dog tags and repeating the names on them like a prayer: "Brown. Jimenez. Okafor. Torelli. Li. Sternberg. Mohamed. Yadav. Callaghan."

Now that the Dam was secure, the NCR brass had given him reinforcements; they'd promoted him to Captain; they'd given him a month's leave from circling the green haze of Searchlight. But he couldn't take leave from their names.

She padded over to his side. He recited the list again twice before he noticed her there. "Sorry."

She laid a hand on the cool skin of his shoulder, which he covered with one of his. "You didn't do anything wrong," Maisie replied, not only meaning his apology. She leaned down, wrapped her other arm around his chest, and set her cheek against his.

"If you keep saying that, I might end up believing you." He nuzzled her absently, his mustache prickling the crook of her neck.

She didn't say anything else, but stayed draped around him, trying to transfer some of her warmth to him, while he stared down at the chain in his hands. Finally he said, "You'll get a crick in your back. Go back to bed."

She only kissed his cheek and said, "There's no you there."

He half-chuckled and shook his head. "You're really not going anywhere until I cheer up, are you?"

"You don't have to cheer up. I just don't want you to feel like this alone."

Astor pulled back enough to see her face and studied her intently for a long time, as if deciding whether she was real. He seemed even more vulnerable now than when she'd first entered the room. Something finally seemed to settle into place behind his eyes, and he recovered his usual composure. "You're a sweetheart, but you're still getting a crick in your back. Come on."

He let go of the chain, stood, and led her back to bed. Maisie wrapped herself around him, head pillowed on his shoulder, arm slung across his chest, and the arch of her foot settled against the curve of his calf. Astor held her hand and kissed her forehead, and they lay like that until he slid back into soft snoring.


End file.
